Le Taha'a Island Resort & Spa

Le Taha'a Resort was wonderful! The accommodations were great- we really liked the large deck space (with covered area too) and the beautiful design elements in the overwater bungalow. We stayed in Bora Bora view overwater bungalow number one. This put us nice and close to the pool, water sports equipment, pool restaurant and fabulous coral garden. A few small suggestions would be to have a DVD player in the room to watch movies in case of bad weather. (There were a few movies in English on tv but not many options- we did have some rain over our stay hence we checked out the tv.). Also the hot breakfast buffet food was slightly cold on a consistent basis. However, the authentic Polynesian charm and beautiful setting makes us wish for a return visit!

Le Taha'a Island Resort is a wonderful place for couples to spend time together. the coral garden is a snorkelers paradise, the grounds are impeccable and time seems to stand still. We will be back, as it was everything we had hoped it would be, fine food, fine wine and a magical atmosphere.

Le Taha'a Resort is a beautiful place filled with wonderful people. It's a more authentic experience. We went there after spending 5 days in Bora Bora (also amazing but more commercial) and instantly fell in love with Taha'a. Yes there are some things that could stand updating, but that is nothing in relation to how relaxed you feel there. Next time we go to FP this may be our only destination. LOVE IT!!!

To be fair, this resort probably deserves 5 stars. It is certainly a nicer place than many other resorts that I have rated 4 stars in the past. My rating comes in relation to my expectation vs. the price paid i.e. I expected a little more from a resort costing $1200/night. In full disclosure, my wife and I argued about this rating as she demanded that it be a 5. I told her to leave her own review. First the good/positives: - The front desk, concierge and general manager were always available with good service - Resort Lagoon: The water and lagoon clarity are unrivaled including Bora Bora water - Activities: There isn't a whole lot to do in or around the other islands which makes this particular place VERY RELAXING. You are almost forced to relax and take it easy. - Coral Garden: The coral garden next to the resort is free and makes for a very good and easy snorkeling trip. You will see lots of fish and possibly even an eel. Tips: Go at the highest tide or you will be struggling to get over the coral. Cross the lagoon and start at the north end of the channel so you can float with the current and not against it. Get some free reef shoes from the activities area as you will need them for the walk on the adjacent island. - Taha'a Tour: We did an overland and ATV tour with Poerani Tours and it was the most laid back and down to earth tour we took during our trip to French Polynesia. The owner even took us to his house and showed us around. Highly recommend but possibly book directly through Poerani to avoid the hotel markup. - Bungalows: We had an overwater bungalow which we thought was well appointed and felt very private. Our bungalow looked out towards Tahaa which gave us access to sunrise but not sunsets. The water depth under our bungalow was about 3 feet which was very nice for getting in the water. Other places we stayed had water depths of 15 feet which left us hanging on the ladder. - Bicycle Service: I like how they only use bikes here. Other places we stayed used golf carts which can be heard going up and down the walkways. The bikes are much quieter and you are less aware of their presence. For the opportunities: - The food: It wasn't bad but wasn't great either. For breakfast they have the smallest selection of any of the resorts but it was enough to satisfy. We did not eat at the nicest restaurant as we were trying to be reasonable with our spend. However, expect to spend $100/person at the other restaurants as well. We saved some money by eating a big breakfast, snacking on protein bars and nuts for lunch and then splitting appetizers for dinner. We still spent $150-$200 per day on meals (dinner). For this price we expected a bit more than just "average". We ordered a $30 wahoo appetizer one night by the pool and while it was very good, it came with only 4 very small pieces of fish. Lastly, their attempt at the local ceviche dish with coconut milk was the most tasteless of all that we tried (I had to add plenty of salt) and also seemed the least fresh. The food was all decent but for those prices (room and meals) I expected better. There are other resorts in FP who do meals much better. Tip: Get the breakfast buffet included with your package and bring some light weight snacks if you want to avoid paying for lunch and dinner daily. Tip 2: If they do the bbq while you are there I recommend it. It was a very good spread of food for about the same cost that you will pay for your meals. The food at the bbq was also some of the better that we had while at the resort. - The drinks: The cost per mix drink is about $25 each! I know we are in the French Polynesia and that this is typical within the resorts so I will not complain too much about costs. BUT, when I do pay this for a drink I expect it to be TOP NOTCH and possibly even a little heavy handed on the alcohol. The drinks we did order (which were few) had very little alcohol and were average at best. HERE'S A TIP THAT SAVED US WELL OVER $1000 WHILE IN FP: Get yourself one or two bottles of duty free alcohol. Note that they do have a shop in Papeete when you arrive in Tahiti to collect your bags. When you get to the hotel you can have them bring some mixers like sprite, pineapple juice, etc. This way you can make your own drinks during the day and only buy one or two for dinner if you are willing to pay the $25/drink. We found a bottle of Rose wine on the menu for $38 and had that most nights for dinner. - The bungalow: The only real issues that I had with the bungalow were: 1) our bungalow faced south/southeast which was the direction that the wind came out of all day every day during our September trip. I do not know if this is consistent with all months of the year but a continuous 15-20 mph wind was actually quite chilly even when we weren't wet. If I were to do it again I would like try to get a bungalow facing west (for sunsets) and to be a little more protected from the southeasterly winds. 2) the shower was a bit small. Let's be honest, this is a couples destination. Other places that we stayed had plenty of room for two people in the showers and bath tubs while Le Tahaa did not. - Food Servers: While these folks were not bad, they were not perfect. We often had to pour our own wine or ask for bread and butter. For breakfast we had to get up and ask for our ticket most mornings. OK, no huge issues here but when you are paying $1200/night for a room and $200+ for a meal you want it to be a little bit better than that. Overall this was a really nice and relaxing stay and likely worthy of 5 stars. I, however, felt that there are a few things that could be tweaked to make it a true 5 star quality place.

Spent eight nights here and came home a new person! So relaxed! Here's my thought/recommendations, as I came to this very well prepared after reading nearly every review. Le Taha'a 101: Pros-- very relaxed, private, romantic, low-key, beautiful and clean property. No party scene or obnoxious guests--everyone there with same purpose--to relax! No need to dress up except for one restaurant. Large Over-water bungalows very private and quiet. Friendly staff, amazing snorkeling, awesome tours, excellent buffet breakfast with something for everyone. Cons-- poor shampoo (seems ridiculous to complain about, but in saltwater, u need CONDITIONER). Some maintenance issues on decks but surely did not impact quality of vacation. TOO EXPENSIVE food and drinks. Perhaps if they lowered price a bit, they would actually make more money. Minimal english tv channels (really is ok as you should not be watching tv!) Things i learned in 8 days To make the most of my next trip there and to save some money for better things like black pearls and excursions. ----- drink the tap water in bungalow (totally fine). Instead of paying ridiculous costs at meals---ask for tap water! We brought our own booze and mixed it with Crystal light lemonade, etc. Bring your own MASK for snorkeling as there's aren't the best. Property has free fins, water shoes, snorkels. BRING SNACKS and lots of them. We ate breakfast and dinner but skipped lunch. Bring conditioner as your hair gets so dry in saltwater. Hotel lotion and soap is fine. There is not alot to do at resort (esp on poor weather day) so bring plenty of books and games if needed (we are scrabble and cribbage players). Bring a float and some twine to keep you in place. Room service is the cheapest dinner you can get at resort (will still run $70). The romantic beach dinner is actually a great value for what you get--preferred use of money over the one expensive restaurant for same cost. Polynesian for a day private tour with Samuel is PHENOMENAL and we tailored it to fit our tourist needs (skipped fishing and did Vanilla farm/Pearl farm instead)--we swam with sharks,sting rays, spear fished, snorkeled and had HUGE lunch with his family. I would DEFINITELY consider spending the extra money for end of pontoon #41----best view in the place--would not for any other pontoon room though. Skip Bora Bora extra cost room---your view also includes all the catamarans that anchor wight in front of you and the resort pool/beach. 29-45 has best views (21-28 look at the resort dock). Bottom line: super relaxed luxury resort where everyone is casual and laid back. Everyone dresses casually and doesn't feel like your typical American snooty five star resort. Definitely will be back to this place.

We spent five wonderful days here in July and only wish we could have stayed longer. We had an overwater bungalow (002) with a view of Bora Bora; the location was perfect as it was not too far from the pool, the coral gardens and the resort's facilities. Bora Bora took on many different hues according to the time of day and the clouds or lack thereof and we never tired of the view. The beach bungalows looked lovely too and those furthest from the Resort's reception area would be an excellent choice. We ate at all three restaurants; our dinner at the Ohiri restaurant was superb. We would advise that you book at this restaurant before you arrive - especially if you want to celebrate a special occasion. Eating by the pool on a balmy night is lovely but the portions of some main dishes were ridiculously small so check before you order! The Resort staff were extremely helpful at all times and nothing was too much trouble. Having snorkelled many reefs in many locations, I would not rave about the coral garden at Le Taha'a but it provided us with a bit of much needed exercise. It is very shallow in places and I found it much easier to snorkel wearing reef shoes (provided) rather than fins as it made it easier to manoeuvre around the rocks and coral. Those looking for discos and entertainment should book elsewhere. Le Taha'a's charm is it's laid back atmosphere and ambiance - just make sure you go with a loving partner, take some good books and be prepared to relax and switch off from the world!

The grounds of the property are absolutely gorgeous and meticulously maintained! Pictures don't even do it justice. The snorkeling on premise was amazing and there is a tiny island you can walk to from the resort which is so beautiful and neat. The over water bungalows are large, beautifully decorated with a local feel, and well appointed. The food presentation was 5 star and really delicious (but pricey as most of Tahiti so plan accordingly). We were here on our honeymoon and the service we received was truly amazing and made our stay so special!!!

The perfect resort. Amazing bungalows, good service, GREAT food and drinks, calm and peaceful. The only minus being that the restaurant staff regularly kept forgetting orders. Beautiful, newly renovated feel. Gorgeous coral reef accessible from the hotel by swimming/canooing.

This resort is located in a nicely designed garden and landscape. It is more quiet and peaceful than other resorts in French Polynesia. Black tip reef sharks and sting rays swim sometimes underneath the water bungalows which is truly wonderful. Some parts of the hotel and facilities need renovation now, however. E.g. the tennis court could not be used as it needed a make over (which was not indicated on the website). The food for lunch and dinner is of a high quality. The breakfast buffet, however, is not five star like. Overall, the value for money is ok.